Dedicated to my Grandmother Carmelita Woodard. 1933-2006
This life story began a little over a year ago. My Grandmother would call me and my Mom every week. One week she called and said she couldn't talk long because she had a sore throat. The next few weeks she called and her throat was still sore. I didn't think this was right so I told her to go to the Doctor, it sounded like she had Throat Cancer. Of course she told me not to say that, but she smoked like 2-3 packs of cigarettes a day.
Well she went to the doctor and it was indeed Throat Cancer. It was on her vocalcords.They gave her the typical treatments for it and everything was fine they had caught it early. But something else was wrong, Her doctor was noticing that Grandma was yellow in color. And after doing blood test they gave her, They decided to give her a full body scan. After doing this they noticed a big tumor in her abdomin. Further investigstion lead it to the Liver. After a Biopsy my Grandmother was diognosed with Liver Cancer. We asked if it was the Throat Cancer that had spread, and to my amazement the Throat Cancer had nothing to do with it. She had had 2 Cancers at the same time.

Please Look Over This, IT COULD SAVE You or a Loved Ones Life.

Early stages of cancer can be asymptomatic and may go undetected for months or even years. When symptoms do develop, they are most pronounced as pain.

Pain associated with cancer is a result of several possibilities: invasion or destruction of normal tissue with cancer cells; stretching of internal tissue by tumor growth; pressure of tumor on an organ; blockage of a vital passageway by the tumor; and infection caused by cancer.

Other symptoms may include loss of appetite, loss of weight, fever of unknown origin, limb weakness, sensory loss, or an absence of tendon reflexes in the limb.

Liver cancer, both primary and metastatic, often exhibits symptoms of general malaise as well as pain and tenderness. The discomfort is usually of a moderate degree and most often in the upper or upper right part of the abdomen. In more advanced cases, symptoms of jaundice, a yellowing of the skin and eyes, may also appear.

After the Surgeon went in to do a bio, He came back with some pretty bad news. She a had a rare Liver Cancer caused by Cirrhosis and Hepatitia C.

Hepatitis C is a disease of the liver caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV). HCV is spread by contact with the blood of an infected person.

Nearly 4 million Americans have been exposed to hepatitis C by blood-to-blood contact and over 2.7 million have ongoing chronic infection. The progression of hepatitis C is typically silent until it is late in the course of disease. When symptoms are present, often liver cirrhosis (scarring) has been occured. The progression to liver cirrhosis only occurs in 20 percent of those with hepatitis C and liver failure develops in a about 5 percent.

From the time of acquisition of the virus it can take up to 50 years to develop cirrhosis. Most people with hepatitis C are unaware that they have it.

What are the Symptoms of Hepatitis C?

There are many signs and symptoms of Hepatitis C. However, 80% of persons with Hepatitis C have no signs or symptoms. Some of the symptoms are: jaundice, fatigue, dark urine, abdominal pain, loss of appetite, and nausea.

Now becuase of Grandmas age(73), She was not a candidate for Transplant. They gave here 1 option...Cryosurgery.

Cryosurgery is a new technique that can destroy tumors in a variety of sites (brain, breast, kidney, prostate, liver). Cryosurgery is the destruction of abnormal tissue using sub-zero temperatures. The tumor is not removed and the destroyed cancer is left to be reabsorbed by the body. Initial results in properly selected patients with unresectable liver tumors are equivalent to those of resection.

Cryosurgery involves the placement of a stainless steel probe into the center of the tumor. Liquid nitrogen is circulated through the end of this device.

The tumor and a half inch margin of normal liver are frozen to -190°C for 15 minutes, which is lethal to all tissues. The area is thawed for 10 minutes and then re-frozen to -190°C for another 15 minutes. After the tumor has thawed, the probe is removed, bleeding is controlled, and the procedure is complete. The patient will spend the first post-operative night in the intensive care unit and typically is discharged in 3 - 5 days.

Unfortunately this didn't help.

They gave Grandma 6 months to live if that.

My Mom and I live in Arizona and Grandma was in Washington. I flew my Mom to Washington to be with her Mother. She was there about 6 weeks calling me several times a day. Grandma was getting worse with every phone call. I felt reallt bad for my Mom, she was there all alone and about to lose her Mother.

Now some people think there is no God but on one particular day there was one watching over me.

My Mother-In-Law (also from Washington) Had been down here in Arizona visiting. I was taking her to the airport to return home. As we were standing in the Check-In line my cell phone rang, it was my brother. He told me Grandma was really bad and I need to get to Washington to see her before she passed. I told him I couldn't, I had no babysitter, My husband was working weird hours and at that very moment I was at the airport so my Mother-In-Law could catch her flight home. Of course I'm crying cause I feel so bad.

My Mother-In-Law looks at me and tells me to get on a plane she will stay, and watch the kids.We tried to call my Husband but the phone was busy. I didn't just want to hop on a flight. But something inside told me to do it. And my Mother-in-Law, God bless her, was very persistant. She told me everything would be fine and she would go back to my house and tell my Husband what was going on.

This is in January 2006, Washington State is COLD. I'm in Arizona I have shorts, a tank top, and sandles on. My Brother told me to get the plane ticket and he would get me clothes when I got there. So I did. Now I know you guys won't believe this but all the flights we're booked. A man that had been standing there heard my whole story and my phone conversation, and the conversation with my Mother-In-Law. He went up to the front desk and told the lady working there he would give up his seat to me ONLY. Other people were on Stand-by, but he refused to give up his seat unless it was to me. Also the man basically gave me his ticket. He paid for me to go. He told them to change the ticket name. And yes by now I'm really crying, because all these people were pulling together to help me out. The thing that really sadens me is that the man was on his way home after going to see his Mom who had just passed from Cancer. This is no lie. The day was really weird. I don't know his whole name but his first name is John, and if he ever reads this I want to say I Thank You and that you have changed my life. Your Kindness is more than anybody could ever ask for. I was a complete stranger and you held your hand out as if I were family. I will always remember you. Remember your face.

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